About Me

Welcome to Blog Bites! I love writing and reading romance of all genres which is why I've created "In the Author Spotlight". That way you and I can find out who's out there and what more they have for use to dig our claws into.
Are you an author interested in being in the "Author Spotlight"? Shoot me an email at AnnLory@gmail.com for a spot.
Currently, I'm published in contemporary and paranormal. If you'd like to read excerpts and find out what's out, or what's in store for you please visit my website at www.annlory.com.

Where to Find Me

If you want to sign up for my newsletter you can email me as well. The newsletter goes out bi-monthly and is filled with:

* free reads

* sneak peeks

* author interviews

* contests

* & more.

COMING in APRIL

Sparks fly with not only the wicked slash of flying stakes, but with the heated passion the two try to deny. It's only a matter of time before the walls tumble down and Alyssa faces the truth: not all vampires are evil. But can she put aside her hate and surrender to Damian, for all eternity?

COMING in MAY

Marrying the enemy can be the sweetest torture...

CURRENTLY AVAILABLE

Jacques is determined to protect Kelly, but his new enemy—once a friend and a teacher—is older and stronger and Jacques will risk all to ensure Kelly remains forever his.

She is the light who will save his soul from darkness.

Marisa ran away from Brandon ten years ago, but now that she's back, he's determined she's going to see things his way...

BAIT and SWITCH

nominated for best contemporary romance 2009

A Las Vegas gigolo and an uptight lawyer from New York learn there's more to life than just business when they quite literally find love while "on the job"...

Jacob's wanted Sophie for several months now and with Christmas upon them, Jacob decides he's going to make his holiday wish come true.

People often ask me why I write paranormal fiction. I have a career in federal finance and I go to the office every day. I belong to a triathlon club and participate in running, swimming, and biking events. Yesterday, I even did my very first half marathon and had a fantastic time. Yet, getting time in to write books seems like an awful lot of work and that’s what everyone asks me about. Sure, it seems like simply carving time out to write would be a chore. Except, it isn’t. Why? Because it’s fun!

Imagination is a wonderful thing and it takes me to places I’d never have the courage to go in life. It lets me see my world in new and creative—albeit admittedly weird—ways. It combines my activities with my imagination. For instance, I like to ride my bicycle home from work and as I ride, stories evolve in my head. My route home from the office is ten miles, the majority of which is through a beautiful state park. The plot for my upcoming novel, Burgundy Betrayal (number two in the Spiritus Chronicles), was born as I rode along the river through the hills lined with evergreens. As I a pedaled, what-if scenarios rolled through my mind until the book came together. Filled with werewolves, witches, and vampires, the park is a key element in Burgundy Betrayal.

Book one in the Spiritus Chronicles, Crimson Vengeance, came about after meeting a medical examiner. Of course, if you’ve read any of my books, you know I have a love of all things paranormal and so in Crimson Vengeance, the medical examiner is also a vampire! Again, it was the everyday world around me that provided the inspiration and let me take a walk on the wild side even if it was only through my imagination. How can I not find time for that kind of fun?

So, if you want to take a walk that wild side with me, pick up Crimson Vengeance, and we’ll make the journey together. Cheers!

Love, desire, and secrets—a trail littered with murder and the choice one vampire will have to make that will seal her fate or set her free…

Spokane County Medical Examiner Riah Preston has a job to do and a secret to keep. Riah is a vampire and she’s on a mission to discover a cure for the very thing that has kept her a prisoner of darkness for over five hundred years. With the help of Moses Lake Coroner Ivy Hernandez and genetic scientist Adriana James, they are on the verge of a breakthrough. When victims of a rogue vampire begin to show up along the I-90 corridor, things get complicated. The appearance of vampire hunter Colin Jamison complicates the situation even further. Will they be strong enough to stop this vampire killer cutting a wide path of death and destruction? Or will the secrets Riah holds in her heart destroy them all?

Zoe: Right now I’m working on book 3 of my Preternaturals series, which sadly doesn’t have a name yet. This is the longest I’ve gone without a title for a book. I might have to make it an open contest to name it if I can’t come up with something soon.

AL: What is one glaringly/specific personality trait that you put into your hero/heroine that is all Zoe? One that a family member or friend stops and says, “Hey, this is so you!

Zoe: The smart-assery. Most definitely. And if that’s not a word, I just made it a word. :P

AL: How do you decide upon your settings? What about the names of characters? Do you ever change either mid-stream into a story?

Zoe: I like smaller towns; they feel easier to manage, and they often have weird quirks which are fun to play with. I also like to write totally made-up places because I don’t want people who live in a place to go: “Hey there’s no coffee shop on that street corner!”

I’m awful about character names. Sometimes they just come to me, but usually I ask Twitter, lol. People on Twitter helped me name Zane (Z) and Fiona, the main characters in my next book. Z has to go by an initial because I’ve got too many rhyming names for major characters: Jane, Zane, Cain, Dayne. You can see where I need an intervention. And I try not to change those things, mid-stream. It’s too jarring for me.

AL: What favorite movie; or T.V. show makes you hunker down on the sofa and settle in for the night?

Zoe: I really don’t have a TV. If I watch something it’s on Netflix Streaming or Hulu. And generally I watch in 15 minute increments. I just don’t have the attention span to sit and watch a full show, plus I’ve got too much to do. Though I will sometimes sit and watch a movie which completely contradicts my above statement. I’m wacky that way.

AL: What is the most adventurous thing you’ve ever done?

Zoe: I’ll let you know when I do it. :)

AL: If you could go anywhere in the world and in any time…where would you go? What would you do? And why that time-period?

Zoe: Far into the future. And anywhere, really. I just want to see if we’re still here and if we became really really stupid like in the movie Idiocracy (scariest movie I’ve ever seen) or if smart people started procreating again.

AL: Can you share some of your plans for 2011 and beyond?

Zoe: Well, I’m on a ten-yr-plan and the plan is basically... write a lot of books. Keep making a living. Maybe get rich because that would be nice, and then I could write purely for passion exactly what I wanted instead of having to worry about if it would sell.

After buying the antebellum home she’s fantasized about since childhood, Anna Worthington discovers Luc, a dangerously seductive incubus who has been trapped in the house by a fifty-year-old curse. To rid herself of her problem house guest she’ll call on a priest, gypsies, ghost hunters, and the coven of witches from lust bunny hell. All she has to do is resist him long enough to break the spell so they can go their separate ways. If she doesn’t, she could die. And that would be the best case scenario.

Excerpt:

Instead of Beatrice, it was about the best looking man Anna had ever laid eyes on––airbrushed magazine spreads notwithstanding. Dark hair fell around his face, framing an olive complexion and cold, bright green eyes that appeared to burn with a light of their own.

They seemed to pull her in, hypnotize her. They were eyes that had known violence. Whether as the victim or the perpetrator, it was too hard to tell, but she suspected the latter.

His lips were as full as any man’s had a right to be, and Anna had to stop herself from imagining nibbling on his lower lip. He had the kind of cheekbones sculptors spent a lifetime learning to chisel into stone. Rather than sitting in the chair, he seemed to drape. Casually. Sinfully.

Shirtlessly.

She closed her eyes and raised a hand to her head, feeling for bumps. After what she’d just experienced the last thing that seemed normal was lusting after a hot stranger in her bedroom. Maybe she was dreaming again.

The next words to fly from her mouth were so stupid she would later blame a mild concussion. “You should know this house is haunted, and the last guy who tried anything got beaten bloody for his trouble. So you should ask yourself if it’s worth losing your good looks over.”

His deep, familiar chuckle slid into her, too fluid to be human. Anna vaulted out of the bed, taking the sheets with her, wrapping them around her frame as she went.

“I’ve seen it all,” he said waving a hand away as if he could never be moved by such banal things as nudity.

Not while I was conscious, Anna thought. She backed farther away as he stood and advanced on her. “Um . . . so Beatrice isn’t here?” Diversionary tactics weren’t her strong suit.

There never was a Beatrice. It was him. Her throat tightened again as that thought slammed fully into her brain. She tried to shut out the memories of all the times she’d been a little too naked in the house, either ignoring the ghost or thinking it was a woman.

A slow smile spread over his face. “I’m the thing that killed her.” Fear pulsed through her at his words, and he seemed to savor it like wine. “Beatrice went to Heaven where all good girls with intact souls go when they die. Tell me, my dear, do you think your soul will be intact when I’m finished with you?”

CONTEST: Alan Nayes will be giving away a free copy of his biomedical thriller THE UNNATURAL to one lucky commenter. Good luck!

AL: Hi Alan! Welcome to Blog Bites.

Alan: Hi, Ann, thank you so much for having me. It’s a pleasure to be here.

AL: So, tell us what’s happening with you.

Alan: I’ve recently purchased some land in rural Texas and I’m working on renovating an old ranch house. It’s taking some time but it’s fun to see the progress and who knows—one day I may just spend a month or two there and write a book. A month or two? I only wish I could write a novel that fast.

AL: Tell us about a current or upcoming release.

Alan: BARBARY POINT is my current release and the story is now available on the Amazon and Barnesandnoble websites. BARBARY POINT is a love story that involves a woman who flies back to Wisconsin to close out her father’s estate and ends up falling in love with a fishing guide. Even for those who aren’t keen on fishing, I think the story will “hook” you. I know—not funny.

AL: What other works are you deep into?

Alan: HEMLOCK POND. I jump genres here away from romance directly into the realm of horror. HEMLOCK POND is about a woman and her young son who move into an old farmhouse with a haunted pond on the property. Um…sounds a little like my property. Uh-oh.

AL: When was the defining moment when you realized you wanted to be a writer?

Alan: No defining moment for me, Ann. But more a bunch of small moments—a creative writing class years ago, writing some music in college, and then some screenplays later and finally the eventual publication of my first novel GARGOYLES.

AL: What do you like best about writing? What is your least favorite thing?

Alan: Best—editing. Worst—trying to hammer out that first draft. Some days I’d rather go to the dentist than try to fill up a blank page with words. Not really, but it doesn’t always come easy. Wish it did.

AL: What is the strangest source of writing inspiration you’ve ever had?

Alan: That’s a tough one. I wish I could come up with something really bizarre but it would all be fiction. I must be boring because most of my inspiration comes from simple things I experience in everyday life—newspaper articles, books, dealings with people. My inspiration for BARBARY POINT came from a cottage my family owns on Lake Winnebago in Wisconsin. I travel up there several times a year and have always thought this would be an ideal locale for a love story. Or if no love showed up, at least relax and fish!

AL: It’s time to get personal! Do you have a favorite sport, &/or team that you follow? I love football and my Missouri Tigers.

Alan: Easy, easy, easy. The Superbowl champs—Green Bay Packers. Have always loved them ever since the days of Bart Starr, Ray Nitschke, Willie Wood, Paul Hornung, Jim Taylor, all of ‘em. Aaron Rodgers will be another great one.

AL: Best movie you've seen recently?

Alan: I don’t see many movies but one I did watch in the theaters was Avatar—pretty impressive.

AL: Where would you like to travel if you had the chance?

Alan: Three places I want to see—Antarctica, Hawaii—can’t believe I haven’t been there yet, and some island in the South Pacific—still deciding which one. Have been to my first two choices—the Amazon and the Galapagos Islands. One day I’d like to climb Kilimanjaro. Better train some first.

AL: If I asked your best friend what type of person you are, what would he or she tell me?

Alan: Hardworking, honest, dedicated, great sense of humor, did I say intelligent, witty—oh, you wanted her opinion, not mine. Sorry. “He spends too much time at his computer.” Hey, I swear that one big story’s in me somewhere.

AL: What do you hope for your writing career in the next few years? Any goals that you have yet to obtain that you have set for yourself?

Alan: Big goal—land one of my stories on the New York Times bestseller’s list.

AL: Please share a favorite quote(s) with us.

Alan: My favorite movie quote is from The Flight of the Phoenix—“Mr. Townes, you behave as if stupidity were a virtue.” Sometimes I feel that way when I’m staring at that half finished paragraph.

When Kelly English flies back to Oshkosh,Wisconsin, to close out her father’s estate, the last thing on her mind is falling in love. Again. Kelly is twenty-eight and engaged to an older man who is quite wealthy. She’s happy, and only desires to make the trip back brief, sell her deceased father’s place, and return to her stable life in Los Angeles. However, while taking care of business in Oshkosh, Kelly meets a fishing guide.

BARBARY POINT is Kelly’s story of what happened that one magical week in May on the shores of Lake Winnebago when the ducklings hatch and the walleye run.

Exerpt:

Mother always reminded me, Kelly, love from the mind is nothing more than a pleasurable arrangement, whereas love from the heart lasts forever.

I had listened to these same exact words beginning in junior high, again in high school, and throughout college. And it always worried me I might not be able to tell the difference.

A man I deeply loved once told me that a fish lunges after an artificial lure solely on instinct. He sees it, wants it, and zappo, he‘s hooked.

Love is a lot like that. You see someone you want, the chemistry is there, and zappo, you‘re hooked.

REMEMBER: Alan Nayes will be giving away a free copy of his biomedical thriller THE UNNATURAL to one lucky commenter. Good luck!

CONTEST: Cora Zane is giving away a glitter heart magnet set, and a goodie pack with bookmarks and a cute pin back button, to one lucky reader. Make sure to leave a comment along with your email addy so Cora can contact you if you win. Good luck!

AL: Hi Cora! Welcome back to Blog Bites.

Cora: Thank you for having me.

AL: So, tell us what’s happening with you.

Cora: It’s pretty crazy here, but that’s nothing unusual. I’m on a very short deadline right now, and at the same time, I’m trying to rearrange my office for a new computer before my laptop goes belly up. My family is looking at a necessary trip to D.C. in the near future, and we’re trying to rearrange our schedules to fit that in. Also, author Keri Ford and I will be giving a workshop on e-publishing at Bossier Parish Community College in June. This is in conjunction with our local RWA chapter - www.nolastars.com – so I’m preparing for that.

AL: Would you like to tell us about a current or upcoming release?

Cora: I’m currently in the process of wrapping up Wicked Obsession, which is an erotic vampire novel, and the official sequel to the first vampire novella I ever wrote – Wicked Temptation. With any luck, it will be available through Cobblestone Press in the next few months.

AL: What other works are you deep into?

Cora: I’m in the process of repackaging a previously published story called At the Edge of Twilight. I intend to take that title, and add it in with six other erotic fairytales to create a full length erotic faerie tale collection. I’ll be putting the volume up for sale on both Smashwords and Amazon once I have everything put together and formatted, probably sometime around late September.

I’m also working on an erotic, horror-romance story, that I intend to submit to the new Shivers line at Ellora’s Cave.

AL: When you write do you do a detailed outline before you get started or do you have the idea then just 'fly by the seat of your pants'? :-)

Cora: I plot heavily and do a lot of pre-writing before I ever start writing a first draft. I don’t outline quite the way I used to. I find it saves me time, and I don’t end up having quite so much to rework later on, if I have the major mid-story crisis figured out before I write the first few scenes.

AL: Have you ever wanted to write your book in one direction but your characters wanted to go in another direction. What did you do in such a situation?

Cora: When I first started writing, I had that problem a lot. I’d have a general idea of what I wanted my story to be, and usually one or two scenes in mind, but I didn’t always know how to get my characters to go from point A to point B. I think that had a lot to do with not planning far enough ahead into a story before I started writing it. Now, I make sure I understand each character’s individual goal before I ever start writing, and make sure I have an overall story goal that unifies the characters in some way to keep them all on track. It’s much easier to figure out where your characters are going if you know where you need them to be by the end of the book.

AL: If someone hasn't read any of your work, what book would you recommend that they start with and why?

Cora: I have several free reads on Smashwords, and I usually direct people over there first. My short story Heart Spell is a reader favorite. I often tell interested readers if they like the free stories I’ve posted, they’ll probably like my Werekind Series books, which are available at Cobblestone Press. Even though Dominant Territory is smack dab in the middle of the series, I tend to recommend it before the other books just because it’s my favorite.

AL: It’s time to get personal! What annoys you enough to be considered a pet peeve?

Cora: Well, my husband and friends tease me about being an earthy girl because I let the small stuff slide. It doesn’t bother me much if someone gets my name wrong or makes an awkward faux pas. It doesn’t bother me all that much if someone has stinky feet, or if they munch carrots on the phone while talking to me. It has to be a pretty nasty situation for me to consider it a pet peeve. Spitefulness is a big turn off; the same goes for disrespecting others. I think mean people in general are my pet peeve. People who never seem to have anything good to say about anyone else – I’m usually looking for an exit when I get stuck with someone like that.

AL: What are you reading in your spare time?

Cora: Lately I’m reading a mix of craft books and fiction in my spare time. If I get even ten spare minutes, I’ll pick up a book and read a few paragraphs. I’m currently reading Zombie Tramp by Dan Mendoza, which is a graphic novel. And I just finished Long Slow Burn by Isobel Sharp a few days ago. Before that, I read Beastly by Alex Flinn, which is a really cool YA beauty and the beast type book. Next up on my TBR stack is Ghost Stalker by Jenna Kernan, which is a Harlequin Nocturne. Oh, and through all this, I’ve been spot reading a book about negotiating contracts, but I can’t think of the title or the author’s name right off hand.

AL: If you could meet someone famous in either history, or present day…who would you like to meet and why?

Cora: Someone famous… That’s hard to say. I think it would be fun to see what Anne Rice has on her Nook or Kindle. Too, I always thought it would be fun to go through Stan Lee’s attic if he has one. If he does have an attic, I bet he’s got some really cool stuff up there.

AL: You have to ask a fictional character out on a date—who would you ask and what would you do together?

Cora: Haha! That’s great… I’d probably want to go out on a date with Jack Sparrow just because he’s that wacky kind of character you could see yourself waking up next to in a jail cell the following day. It would be a hoot to go with him to Mardi Gras.

AL: Can you share some of your plans for 2011 and beyond?

Cora: Well, I took most of last year off to hone my craft. I did a lot of studying and test writing. Now, I’m trying to tie up loose ends and be more productive, but it’s not always easy. I hope to have a new Werekind story finished by the end of the year if my schedule allows it. Next year, I’d like to have my plate cleared as far as any contractual obligations go, so I can work on something brand new. I’d really like to put out more single title work in the future.

AL: Please share a favorite quote(s) with us.

Cora: “Plan your work, and work your plan.” That’s actually from a fortune cookie, so I don’t know the author. It’s practical advice, though. I think that’s why I like it so much. Just for the sake of saying so, I have that fortune cookie slip taped to the printer in my home office.

Gage is a cyber vamp, an AI being who feeds off energy, sexual and otherwise. Kiri loves that they can feel each other’s pleasure during sex…during those electric moments when Gage slips his fangs into her neck ports.

Kiri knew from the start Gage wanted a no-strings relationship. But she hadn’t realized his bite would grant him full access to her heart. Didn’t count on being so lost to pleasure that she lets loose her innermost desire. Now Gage knows her secret, and Kiri can’t bring herself to face him.

But Gage has a secret of his own. He’s found more than sexual satisfaction with Kiri. He’s discovered the ultimate connection—and he’ll prove it the second he’s back in her bed.

Excerpt:

“You’re more than welcome to join us,” Adam offered. Once again his gaze settled on her neck ports, and she shivered at the way his gaze caressed her like a physical touch. As androids, cyber vampires fed off sensual energy rather than blood. There wasn’t a doubt in her mind what this one wanted from her.

With his card tucked between his fingers and his arm resting on the back of the booth again, he created a space near the edge for her to sidle in next to him if that was her wish. “Interested?”

“Um, thanks, but…” Kiri just shook her head.

He’s not Gage. Fucking him won’t fix things.

She hated herself for having to rationalize it.

Ignoring the way her clit throbbed, she tucked the serving tray under her arm and left the suite in an effort to distance herself from the temptation. Once outside, she shut the door behind her and headed down the glass walkway that ran all the way around the cylinder-shaped club, connecting the circle of third-floor suites overlooking the main club area. A discreet stairwell tucked farther down the walkway spiraled behind the inner walls of the building, connecting the multiple levels.

As Kiri reached the stairwell, she stopped to look out over the glass riser edging the walkway, gazing down at the light show that pulsed and flickered over the dance floor. Instead of going straight down to check in at the bar, she stepped back into the shadows of the tiny third-floor landing and pressed her back against the wall on the other side of a waist-high vase of peacock orchids.

The music vibrated through her, the booming bass matching the desire throbbing through her body. Her inner thighs were slick with cream, her cunt aching for a man’s attention. She couldn’t get her mind off the scene in the suite. Kiri clamped her eyes shut tight, her conscience turning over the many reasons why she shouldn’t—why she wouldn’t—accept the blond man’s offer. There were many, but still her body nagged her for release. Craving a quick climax, she glanced off to the right, around the large plume of flowers, to see if anyone was coming up the stairs and saw no one. She was alone.

Heart galloping, her skin tingling with urgent need, she slipped her hand beneath her skirt, hesitating when her fingertips grazed the edge of her panties.

She wondered if she was far back enough from the glass riser to prevent anyone from looking up and seeing her. Were the shadows dark enough for true concealment?

To hell with it. Getting caught seemed a much lesser punishment than going unfulfilled.

REMEMBER: Cora Zane is giving away a glitter heart magnet set, and a goodie pack with bookmarks and a cute pin back button, to one lucky reader. Make sure to leave a comment along with your email addy so Cora can contact you if you win. Good luck!